Destiny
by metsuryus
Summary: Fiore, the beautiful land, fell into the hands of a tyrant not too long ago. Deep within, resides a Fire Dragon Slayer and a Celestial Spirit Mage, both desperately trying to escape the clutches of the King. When fate turns its tables, their story begins.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own FT. And I'm saying this also for the next chapters.**

**IMPORTANT:**

**Note that this is a fanfic in the FT universe. I don't, and I'm not planning to create new places or OC. I simply changed each character's roles, what things will happen and when will they occur. So, I hope you enjoy it.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Prologue**

"Congratulations, Queen Layla. It's a girl." The nurse said as she put the cloth-wrapped baby beside her queen's head.

Layla gently stroked the little baby's head with the last remaining strength she had in her body. All those nine months of waiting had finally bore fruit just a few minutes ago.

"Jude..." Layla called her husband, happy tears flowing freely from her tired eyes. "A girl, huh... As promised, we'll name her Lucy."

Jude wiped off the tears from his face. "Lucy..." He muttered to himself, trying to engrave the name to his mind for the rest of his life. "I like the sound of that. Now rest, Layla. It's been a very long day and the way you look now didn't help either."

Not wanting to start an argument in her weakened state, the blonde woman closed her eyes, and drifted off to sleep. Jude took the opportunity to cradle Lucy in his arms. He rocked the little baby gently back and forth, and she only giggled.

Since that time, he decided to think that having a child wasn't as bad as he thought it would be.

* * *

Eight cloaked figures stood in front of the castle.

"It's finally time." The eldest who seemed to be the leader of the group declared.

"Master Hades." The man behind him spoke, stepping closer to the man in front of him.

"Bluenote. You will stay. The rest will take care of the army." Hades ordered the man. He threw his cloak away, exposing his face to the world. The rest followed suit.

Hades's 'army' consisted of seven people. Bluenote and six other. A little girl named Ultear. A stylish young man named Rustyrose. A blonde pyromaniac aged less than thirteen named Zancrow. A fatty named Kain Hikaru. A weird man named Zoldeo. A tall, muscular man in his seventeens named Azuma. All of them were young, yes (except Zoldeo). Even Ultear was less than ten years old.

Hades had confidence in them; he personally taught each of these talented mages with a Lost Magic. Ultear, for example, had just mastered the Arc of Time in a very young age, showing how promising her skills was. Hades made a promise to himself that he would appoint her as the leader of his 'personal army'. Well, he had yet to decide on a name.

The six mages scattered from where they stood and did the things they were told to do; Ultear and Zancrow were to destroy the castle, Rustyrose, Azuma, Kain and Zoldeo were to take down the army.

Hades still stood there with Bluenote, stroking his long beard. "Bluenote."

"Yes, sir?" Bluenote responded.

"Shake the ground a little bit, will you?"

Bluenote smirked, and clicked his fingers. The ground beneath him shook violently as if it was going to split in two.

* * *

Jude felt the ground beneath him shook violently as he wrapped Little Lucy around his arms protectively.

"What's going on here?" He tried to walk towards the window, leaning on the wall for support. He squinted his eyes, trying to sharpen his field of vision. Luckily the earthquake lasted only a few seconds.

A group of mages—from what it looked like—had broken into the castle. The mages lost devastatingly in number, but their power exceeded his whole army. He shot a glance towards Layla, who was trying to get up from her position.

"Don't, Layla!" Jude yelled as he rushed to her side and pushing her gently to the bed. "You're still weakened, so just stay in bed!"

Not wanting to waste her energy on pointless arguments, Layla went back to her sleeping position.

"J-Jude..." She called weakly. "Secure...Lucy..."

Jude knew what she meant. He still wanted to spend more time with his newborn child. But to ensure her safety, he had to do it. Well, if you bear the title of King sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do. He knew that this is even harder for Layla.

"Mrs. Spetto!" He bellowed. The servant rushed immediately towards the room and bowed politely.

Jude extends his arm, giving Lucy to the woman. "You know what to do."

Mrs. Spetto was walking towards the door, cradling the baby when she heard her queen calling her name. She turned back and saw the queen extending her left arm which was holding a ring of two gold keys and three silver keys. She took the key and lowered Lucy a little bit, allowing Layla to kiss Lucy's forehead, and disappeared from the room. Jude closed his eyes and prayed.

_Please, be safe. You're our last hope, Lucy._

* * *

Zoldeo rushed towards his master's standing figure.

"Master Hades!" He said as he politely bowed before him. "I have found the King and Queen's chamber."

Hades smirked. "Good job, Zoldeo. You and I will head there, while Bluenote, you can take care of the army. Just try don't to be so...flashy."

Bluenote smirked and walked over to the battlefield near the gate to where his allies were fighting the enemy army.

Meanwhile, Zoldeo led Hades to a chamber deep within the castle. Hades didn't even complain about the distance he had closed in order to meet with the 'owner of the estate'. Instead, he opted to enjoy the architecture of the castle.

Zoldeo stopped in front of a twin door, stepping beside it, allowing Hades to open them. Hades did what he should do.

Behind the door was Jude Heartfilia with five of his personal guards and Layla Heartfilia, sitting in her bed, leaning to the headboard for support. Five of the guards charged towards Hades, but Hades positioned his right hand to mimic a gun and magically shoot bullets, effectively killing all five guards.

"What do you want?" Layla asked, strengthening her voice. Hades chuckled.

"Simple, _King_ Jude and _Queen_ Layla." Hades sneered, specifically pressing on the word king and queen. He assumed the gun-like hand position, and shot Jude right through the heart. "This, is what I wanr."

"JUDE!" Layla screamed, tears flowing freely down her cheeks, silently praying for her husband to be sent to Heaven. She tried to muster some strength, but upon realizing that her effort was futile, she reached for a key in her pocket, held the key in front of her, and called, "You will pay for this! Open, Gate to the Goat—Capricorn!"

A magic circle appreared from the ground beside her, puffs of smoke curtaining the tall figure. A tall, humanoid goat with a suit appeared from the thick smoke.

"Layla-sama." He bowed.

"Raise your head, Capricorn. You know what to do from now on." Layla ordered the goat as she wiped her tears. _Rest in peace, Jude. This man will pay... _she spoke to herself. The goat charged towards Hades, right fist clenched. Hades smirked, and gestured for Zoldeo to step forward and fight in his stead.

Zoldeo took over the goat's body with his Human Possession magic; to which Layla's jaw fell to the floor. Deemed to have shown an opening, Hades shot the woman in the same place he had shot her husband.

Layla only had one last prayer before her life was taken away. _Let Lucy be safe... Let her grow to be a woman far better than me._

* * *

Mrs. Spetto's legs were aching as she ran deeper towards the forest. She had used up an awful lot of stamina and the wild thorns on the forest that scratched her skin didn't help at all. Moreover, a wild blonde pyromaniac who had been wreaking havoc on the palace had burned down a quarter of the forest and burnt some parts of her body.

_Keep running, _she thought to herself. _This girl will be our only hope._

After kilometers of running, she finally reached her destination. A small wooden cottage in the middle of the forest. She knocked on the door, to which a young girl with long wavy blonde hair that almost reached the floor opened the door.

"Pardon my sudden intrusion, young lady." Mrs. Spetto greeted the young girl. "Are you Mavis Vermilion, by any chance?"

* * *

Hades removed Jude's crown from his head and put the golden thing on top of his head. He walked outside in triumph, accompanied by one of his subordinate Zoldeo. After Zoldeo took over the Goat spirit Capricorn, he took over his appearances as well. He opted to change his name as well, so he, from that day on, was under the name of Caprico.

"Listen well, army of the Heartfilia!" Hades bellowed. Everyone stopped from their respective fights, turning their heads towards the old man. "You can choose either to die painfully in the hands of my army, or join me in my quest to create a better world for you to live!"

The remained soldiers, at first, gave Hades a questioning look. After inspecting the crown that rests atop his head, most of them dropped their weapons and raised their hands in defeat. But some of them refused to betray their former king and miserably died in the hands of the mages. About three hundred people decided to follow him, and this, he noted, was the first step of his ambition.

"_Welcome... to the World of Great Magic._"

* * *

**A/N**

So how was it? *goes doki-doki*

It took me a whole week to prepare the plotline and the roles of the characters. And I actually wrote a motherf***ing storyboard for this story. Yes, it's that complicated. But I'll manage to make it as simple and easy to understand.

Pleeeeease review! I want to know what do you think of this story!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: A New Beginning**

It was very easy for Hades. Yes, very easy. He had an Arc of Time user in his ranks. And a very skillful one at that.

Summoning forth her magic circles, Ultear repaired the enormous Mercurius Palace as if it was nothing special. For a normal person, it would took them a great amount of magic power to the point that their vision blurred. But Ultear was special; her magic power vessel was splendid considering her very young age. Thanks to her, he could move in to the castle that very same day. All of his seven so-called personal bodyguards had made themselves comfortable in the castle, and so did he.

Except for Zoldeo. Seems like he had to adapt to his 'new body'. The goat spirit's—scratch that, his body seemed to sense some disturbance in the sky, so he decided to go to the balcony. Much to his confusion, the pang of weird feeling in his chest won't disappear. He looked up to the dark blue night sky, glittered with stars of various shapes, sizes and colors. While observing the sky, he realized that the celestial spirit had shared his knowledge with him. He could now pinpoint which star is what, and what constellation did they make.

But something caught his eye.

A star appeared out of nowhere. And it exploded—seven colors of rainbow danced, circling the newborn star. Even a man with a bad aesthetic sense as himself considered the phenomenon... _beautiful_. After the explosion, the star revealed its true form. The star wasn't very big, but it was radiating a very bright golden light.

Seconds later, two stars began to fade.

He squinted to get a better look. The left and bigger star died first and seconds later the the golden star to its right, which was smaller but brighter, died.

And it all clicked in his head. He decided to do a research in the library.

_It's not just a coincidence, right?_

* * *

"Pardon me for my sudden intrusion." The old lady greeted her. "Are you Mavis Vermilion, by any chance?"

The girl named Mavis nodded, and she inspected the injured old woman and the baby she's cradling.

"My name is Spetto, and I am the Fiore Kingdom's head maid." She introduced herself, trying her best to curve her lips into a smile despite the soaring pain she felt.

"You are injured!" Mavis gasped as her eye caught Mrs. Spetto's burnt skin. "Come inside, let me treat you!"

Mavis directed Mrs. Spetto to a sofa in the living room while she ran to the bathroom, looking for some first aid kit. Once she found the box, she took it to the living room and began treating the old lady's wounds. At first Mrs. Spetto offered to treat her own injuries but Mavis objected, seeing the tiredness rubbed in her face.

"What happened?" Mavis asked as she began cleaning the wound.

"The King and Queen was... killed." Mrs. Spetto confessed, eyes glued on the floor. She was fighting back her tears, obviously. Mavis suddenly stopped, shocked.

"Then... that child is..." Her eyes were directed towards the baby in the sofa next to them.

"Yes. Her name is Lucy Heartfilia."

"Who did this?" She refrained from using the word 'kill', knowing that it will sadden Mrs. Spetto.

"A man named Hades and seven of his minions."

Mavis was shocked. The enormous Mercurius Palace of Fiore, taken over by _eight _people? Just who they might be? "Are they mages?"

"Yes. And a strong one at that."

Silence engulfed the room, and Mavis took the initiative breaking it. "A few months ago, when Layla found out that she's pregnant with Lucy, she made me promise that if something happened with her, I will be the one to took care of her. Indirectly, she had made me this girl's godmother."

Mrs. Spetto eyed the young girl once more. She looked very young, probably in her fifteens or so. Her baggy pink dress and long hair only made her petite build look smaller. _This girl must've had something special in her. Lady Layla wasn't the kind of person who would pick a random person out of nowhere to be Lucy's godmother..._

But she decided that it's rude to barge in her deceased master's life, so she refrained from asking Mavis about her relationship with Layla.

* * *

"What is it that you want to talk about?"

Caprico closed the door. Hades sat in his table, reading some of the paperworks.

"I have found some interesting information, King Hades." Caprico said, his tone hinting some enthusiasm.

"I'm all ears."

"I recently discovered that possessing a spirit's body resulted in the spirit sharing its knowledge to the human container." He explained slowly. "And that, of course, includes the basic celestial spirit knowledge of stars and constellations."

Hades leaned closer in his table.

"A few hours ago I witnessed as the sky produced a new star. Small, but very bright. It exploded upon birth. I watched with my own eyes that a few minutes later that two of the stars died. One, a big star with a not-so-bright white light and next to it, a small golden star that shone brightly."

"What's the point of this?" Hades asked out of curiosity.

"Please, Your Excellency, if you will be kind enough to let me finish." Caprico interjected. "I am fully aware that this is no ordinary phenomenon. I took the liberty of researching this, and this all led to a certain prophecy. If I recall, the prophecy sounded like this, _'Regis Filia and Draco the Second, when they are deemed fit they are to slay the heart of the devil.'_ Does the 'heart of the devil' ring a bell?"

"The heart of the devil?" Hades repeated to himself as he stroked his beard. "You don't mean—Grimoire Heart?"

Grimoire Heart was his own heart—the very heart that used to reside within his body. As soon as he took over Mercurius, he insisted that that heart will be the first thing to be moved in. His power—the secret to his longevity, the immense magic power he has... All because he had removed his heart. He spared a glance at the paperwork scattered in his desk, and realized that he had done the paperworks to change the kingdom's name into Grimoire Heart.

"I'm afraid so, Your Majesty. Upon research, Regis Filia stands for 'princess'. Let's assume that the two stars that had died earlier was King Jude and Queen Layla. You have a theory of them having a child over these past days and before our assault they had moved the child into a safe place. That means the newborn star could have been the newborn baby, and considering her parents, the baby is a princess, am I not mistaken?"

Hades thought about the possibility for a few seconds. "That is possible. How about the other star that you mentioned earlier?"

"Ah, Draco the Second." Caprico replied. "My deepest apologies, My King, but I am still working on that."

"Very well. It is indeed a very useful information. Try to find any lead on this other star. And make it real fast, will you?" Hades ordered. Caprico bowed, and left the room.

* * *

"Finished!"

Mavis eyed her handiwork. It was neat, despite the fact that she rarely treated wounds. "What are you going to do from now on?"

"It assures me that Miss Lucy is in safe hands. I will rejoin my family... At least I want to be together with them through the sufferings we will suffer later from the new tyrant." Mrs. Spetto replied sadly. "I'm afraid I won't be of much help here. But I would like to thank you for all your kindness."

"It's nothing, at all!" Mavis chirped. "But I insist that you stay here for a few days considering the injury on your leg."

"Again, I must thank you for your kindness. If there's a way for me to repay it, please let me know." The old lady replied.

* * *

Seems like being a celestial spirit had some perks.

Caprico stayed up all night in the library, and much to his shock he didn't feel sleepy at all despite the fact that he was up for more than fourteen hours.

He kept researching about the Draco II and the Regis Filia phenomenon, and the evidence to back his theories up. But all his theories proved to be nonsense as there's no evidence available. Sighing heavily, he leaned back on the sofa. He eyed the room, looking for something to knock the door to new ideas. His eyes darted towards the painted ceilings.

He instantly recognized them; the Urano Metria. A map that contains all eighty eight constellations. _This must've been Layla's, _he said to himself. _Celestial Mages and Constellations... Twelve Ecliptic Zodiac Keys... Gold and silver keys..._

_Golden?_

He remembered the dying star and the newborn star. Jude wasn't a mage, but Layla was a noteworthy Celestial Spirit Mage who possessed three of twelve legendary golden Ecliptic Zodiac keys. And among her units, Capricorn the Goat was in it.

He established a new theory; Layla's daughter inherited her magic.

And somehow he was so convinced that his theory was flawless.

_Wait, don't rush things over, _he reprimanded himself. _King Hades wanted some information about the Draco the Second._

As far his knowledge took him, Draco II was a very bright red star born months ago just under the wing of the Draco constellation, just like how a dragon tucked its child under the wing. During its first appearance, witnesses confessed that the star _spewed fire_ and circled itself inside the ring of fire and explode, just like the first appearance of its pair, the Regis Filia_. _Hard to believe, yes, but more than a hundred people said so.

He used his earlier theory that the star characteristics indicates the bearer's magic. Fire Magic types... The standard Fire Magic. Rainbow Fire. Or probably Zancrow's Flame God Slayer Magic. He pulled a book about types of Fire Magic from a shelf.

_Fire Magic: The Ultimate Guide. _The book was thick and the pages were already yellow, indicating its old age. Despite the old appearance, there's no dust, meaning somebody had read this book not a long time ago. He began flipping through the pages, looking for something related to this case.

In the _Lost Magic _chapter, somebody had flipped the corner of a page. Curious, he opened the marked pagen and began reading it.

_Fire Dragon Slayer Magic_

_Classification: Caster Magic, Lost Magic, Dragon Slayer Magic_

_Learning Methods: Training with dragons (First Generation), lacrima implantation (Second Generation), Both implanting lacrima and training with dragons (Third Generation)_

_About the Magic: Being one of the many elements of the ancient dragon slayer magic believed to be able to slay dragons, it is indeed one of the strongest fire magic available in the world. It still has the foundations of dragon slayer magic; to turn the constitution of the user's body to that of a dragon's. For a Fire Dragon Slayer, they are granted with fire-spewing lungs and skin that acts as like a typical fire dragon scales that is immune to fire. A Fire Dragon Slayer has the ability to emit flames from any part of his/her body and eat most types of flame to restore their health and stamina._

_The user of this magic can control their fire at will; they can increase or decrease the temperature or even change their typical color of the fire produced by a Fire Dragon Slayer is red due to their temperature, mainly caused by their normally hotter temperature compared to most types of fire._

_However, like every magic, it is not perfect. A few weaknesses known is that they cannot consume their own fire, meaning that they have to find external sources of fire. They also can't consume fire of higher levels such as the flames of a God Slayer._

Caprico looked at the handwriting on the bottom of the page.

_Draco II_

Draco the Second? Who wrote this? So it means that the bearer of the star is a Dragon Slayer? He reread the second paragraph. _The typical color of the fire... Red. _Well, the color of the star is red.

Without further hesitation he dashed towards Hades's room, only to find his master busy sorting some paperworks.

"Well?" Hades asked, without even moving. "Did you find anything?"

"Yes, I did." Caprico smirked. He explained about the results of his research. Hades stopped doing his paperworks, instead he focused on Caprico's explanation.

"So, the conclusion is, the prophecy meant your...downfall... by a Fire Dragon Slayer and a Celestial Spirit Mage, but please note that this may not be the true meaning."

"It is a bad news for me indeed." He responded. "But this is an ambition to give humans a better place! I'm helping every single one of us reach the perfect world that we all dreamed!" Hades stood from his chair, arms spread wide as he laughed maniacally. _"Eradicate every last bit of them! No Dragon Slayer or Celestial Mage shall interfere with my ambition!"_

"As you wish, My King." Caprico bowed, and left the room.

* * *

_A/N_

I'M VERY SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE

I know this one is boring but bear with me; i have planned it all until chapter 5 *gotslapped*

a little sneak peek of the next chapter:

_Mavis put on her robe and left shortly after, leaving Lucy who was still shocked and hurt, all the while thinking why Mavis hadn't told her sooner and decided to keep it from her._

_She went to the borders of the island. Doing a quick inspection and confirming her safety, she lowered the hood of the black robe and whispered into the thin air, "I am here."_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: A Truth to be Told**

Fiore, the country whose name stands for 'flower'. A peaceful country with unparalleled beauty, ruled by the wise King Jude and Queen Layla from the Heartfilia lineage.

But that was seven years ago.

Ever since Hades rose from the shadows, Fiore turned into a total mess. Luckily, Mavis lived in a small and secluded island not far from the mainland of Fiore itself, Tenrou Island. She used to live in a forest near Crocus, the capital of Fiore. Upon realization that the area was no longer suitable for her needs (and unsafe also), five years ago she decided to move the island famous for its divine tree.

Mavis sighed as she waited for her soup to be cooked. She looked outside the window, the thick cloud looming above the land, completely encasing the sun.

She stole a glance at the another occupant of the house. A seven year old blonde girl impatiently waiting for her lunch at the table. Mavis couldn't help but notice the extreme similarities between the child and her mother. Golden blonde hair, brown eyes full of passion and an attachment towards books.

She poured the now-cooked soup into two bowls, dividing them equally. She pushed one of the bowls towards the little girl, and pulled one for herself.

"Is it delicious, Lucy?" She asked the girl who just had a spoonful of her cooking.

"Of course! After all, Mavis made it!" Lucy grinned widely. Mavis couldn't help but smile and began eating her fill.

* * *

When nighttime fell, Mavis whispered to her doorstep that she will be going somewhere and to guard the house.

"Don't go anywher. If you won't follow my orders, then you're free to consider it as an advice from a friend."

Mavis put on her robe and left shortly after, leaving Lucy who replied a quick 'Yes!'. She went to the borders of the island carefully, making sure that nobody was there. Doing a quick inspection and confirming her safety, she lowered the hood of the black robe and whispered into the thin air, "I am here."

A dragon ascended from the seas. A big, red dragon. Well, technically he didn't appear completely, only peeking his head out from the water.

"It's been a while, Mavis. I am grateful that you have spared some of your time to heed my call." The dragon greeted her in a whisper, but still loud enough for normal humans to hear.

Mavis smiled warmly. "It's nothing, Igneel. Besides, I have something that I need to say to you too. But first, what is it that you want me to do?"

"It's unsafe here." Igneel replied grimly. "Hop on—seems like seeing it with your eyes will do more justice."

Without any further hesitation Mavis walked _on _the water, while Igneel rose from the water until his back was visible. Mavis hopped on the enormous creature, shifting herself into a comfortable position. After confirming that the girl was comfortable in her seat, Igneel extended his wings and took his flying stance, all the while being as quiet as possible.

"Mavis, how's Layla's daughter doing?" He whispered.

"I just told her about her bloodlines a few hours ago. She's still upset, but everything will be okay, I just knew it." Mavis sighed, ending her answer and tried to reach the clouds. "But moreover, have you noticed that _that _has been glowing brighter by day?"

"I noticed not too long ago. And its pair has been, too."

After an hour of traveling, they finally entered a forest in the northside of Fiore; which Mavis, upon first glance, simply recognized—The Worth Woodseas. Igneel slowly descended from the sky, perfectly landing in a clearing in the middle of the forest. Shortly after he closed his wings, Mavis jumped down.

"What is it that you want to show me?" She asked. The dragon gestured for her to follow him. Mavis followed, knowing if she asked more she afraid she would anger the bad-tempered dragon.

Mavis noticed the sudden rise in temperature, so she looked towards her dragon companion. No, the heat wasn't from the dragon. Igneel gestured for her to peek through the trees.

About ten meters from where she and Igneel stood, a boy with bubblegum pink hair was releasing a steady stream of fire from his mouth, retaining it for a good five seconds, and fell backwards. He wiped the bundling sweat on his forehead and stood back from the grounds.

"That, Mavis, is the kid I took seven years ago. Apparently Hades raided the village in the mountains over there that day and out of pure luck the baby was blown right into my left wing. Also, look at that trademark pink hair of the Dragneels'. It was very unfortunate that his father got slain before he finally mastered the true Crimson Lotus arts."

Mavis observed the boy. He may still be seven years old, but he had shown some potential in magic. And his magic power vessel was quite decent considering his age.

"You knew that dragon slayers were hunted all over the world." Mavis said with a warning tone. "Then why did you train him? Aren't you putting him in more danger by doing that?"

Igneel chuckled lightly. Mavis raised an eyebrow. "Well, I believe it is time for you to get to know each other. Natsu!" Igneel called the boy. Natsu rushed to the dragon's side, but upon noticing Mavis he hid behind a tree.

Natsu slowly peeked from the tree, and Mavis smiled. Realizing that the girl wasn't a threat, he walked closer. Mavis held out her hand.

"My name is Mavis Vermilion. You can say that I'm Igneel's best friend. It's a pleasure to meet you!" Mavis introduced herself.

Natsu took her hand and shook it. "I'm Natsu Dragneel! I'm the student of Igneel and the last of the Dragneel clan. Nice to meet you too, Mavis!"

Natsu sat cross-legged on the ground, and Mavis followed.

"You know, Natsu..." Mavis began. "You remind me so much of my foster daughter. He's about the same age as you now. In a few days I'll be teaching her some magic too."

"A girl? What's her name? And what kind of magic?" He asked out of curiosity.

"Lucy. She'll be learning Celestial Spirit Magic. It's a magic that allows you to summon beings from other world and use them for various purposes including battle."

"You really are going to teach the girl that magic? You're just putting her in more danger too!" Igneel objected.

"There's nothing I could do, it's her mother's legacy. Besides, those keys would be a waste if she didn't learn how to use it." Mavis replied calmly. "She's a pretty quick learner, doing this would be just a piece of cake for her."

Natsu watched as the two argue. The name Lucy rang in his head like a bell. He didn't know why, but her name had a good ring in it.

"Igneel, it's not safe discussing about her magic here. You too, you shouldn't have stand out too much. _He_ has eyes all over Fiore, remember?"

Igneel sighed in defeat. "Just...tell him, okay?" Mavis nodded once, and turned to Natsu.

"Natsu, I think you should know the true nature of your magic. Tell me, what do you know about your own magic?"

"Fire Dragon Slayer Magic... A magic that transforms parts of my body to that of a dragon's. I can breathe fire and I can produce them from any parts of my body. I eat fire to restore my stamina, therefore I'm immune to fire."

Mavis nodded affirmatively. Natsu sat straight, readying himself to process the new information he was going to receive. "Actually, the magic you've been learning all this time—Dragon Slayer Magic—it's a forbidden magic. Seven years ago the King declared that Dragon Slayer Magic and Celestial Spirit Magic users were to be killed, and anybody who wishes to learn their magic will be punished... brutally."

"But why?" He asked his mentor. "And if you knew that, why are you teaching me this magic?"

"More than ten years ago a master of the arts of Divination, Cornelia Alberona had a vision of... Well, it's a secret. But eventually, you will know." Igneel explained to the boy. "This is a very top secret information; less than twenty people in this whole world knew. I decided to teach you the arts of fire dragon slaying because I believe that you have the power to do it. You came from a clan of dragon slayers. It raises the possibility of you being one of The Chosen Pair higher. Also, the numbers of dragon slayers left in this world keeps decreasing even as we speak."

Natsu nodded slowly as he processed his master's explanation in his head. "How about the celestial mages?" He asked out of curiosity.

"It's very hard to spot celestial mages all over the world." Mavis chose to answer. "People rarely learn this magic because it's very hard to learn and the keys are rare. They usually have a good way of hiding their keys, for example with Requip Magic which allows you to store your belongings to a separate dimension and summon them whenever you need them. So while dragon slayers are decreasing vastly in numbers because of their easy-to-spot habits, the number of celestial mages decreases far more slower."

Natsu gulped. Mavis continued, "Igneel asked me to meet you today to help him tell you the true nature of your magic and to tell you all this. As you can see, your master here has a habit of resorting to unreasonable and unnecessary violence and he's no good with words."

"I second that." Natsu responded. Both of them laughed, while Igneel sighed in defeat. Again.

"Natsu." Mavis finally got a grip of herself. Natsu shot his head up, while still giggling. "Promise me that no matter what the circumstances, you will not reveal your true identity as a Fire Dragon Slayer, except to those that you really, really trust. Avoid battle as much as possible, and when necessary, simply use hand-to-hand combat. If you have to resort to magic, use it at a very minimum expense. Don't eat any kind of fire no matter how tempting it is, and don't use Dragon's Roar, okay?"

"You got it, Mavis!" Natsu grinned.

"I think it's time for me to get home." Mavis stated simply. Igneel lowered himself, allowing Mavis to hop onto his back. Natsu waved his hand, and Mavis returned the gesture.

"We'll meet again sometime!" The pink haired grinned warmly as his foster father began floating in the air.

* * *

The next day, Mavis approached Lucy who fell asleep on the sofa. Not wanting to disturb the girl's peaceful slumber, she tiptoed all the way to the kitchen, attempting to cook some breakfast.

But much to her shock, there was a bowl of chicken porridge in the dining table. Well, technically there's two bowls, one with the semi-warm porridge and one more empty with traces of the porridge.

Her head reflexively turned towards the sleeping figure of Lucy in the couch. She smiled, and began eating her fill.

She, however, had failed at noticing someone who crept up behind her while she was washing the dishes, so her 'stalker' took the chance as an opening and splashed some water towards her.

"Lucy!" Mavis exclaimed in shock. Lucy giggled.

"Morning, Mavis!" She chirped merrily. "Where'd you go last night?"

"Last night? Oh, I was meeting an old acquaintance of mine." She replied calmly. "Thanks for the porridge, by the way."

"Your very welcome."

An awkward silence fell between them.

"Lucy." Mavis interrupted the silence. "Um... You know... Actually... Layla left me to train you in the arts of Celestial Spirit Magic."

Lucy laughed, much to Mavis's confusion. Mavis raised an eyebrow.

"And I thought you knew!" Lucy laughed so hard, clutching her stomach. "Actually I have been secretly learning that magic!"

"You _what? _But how did you get the keys?"

"I thought you were the one who put it in the box under by bed?"

"Oh."

* * *

Fifteen-year old Ultear was striding down the long hallway directed to her King's study with a little pink-haired girl clutching on her hands. During these seven years, Hades seemed to alter much of Mercurius's interior design. He destroyed many rooms and used them as hallways that displayed his collections of art, attempting to show to every single soul a small part of his so-called 'gracefulness as a King'.

Behind his study, he placed his bedchamber. The bedchamber was nothing much of a surprise, it is indeed big but lacked decorations.

However, his main priority is his study. Every inch of the wall were covered in bookshelves; thousands of books filling them. Not just books, but decorations too. His desk was neatly placed in the middle. He insisted that the room ceiling will be painted like the night sky, most likely because Hades always stayed in the dark side.

She carefully knocked the door, and when Hades told her to enter, she obliged. She walked closer, the little girl still clutching onto her hand.

"Well, well, look what we have here." Hades greeted her. "Who's the little girl?"

"Her name is Meredy." Ultear said. "She may be little, but she has a unique ability. She could read people's feelings by simply looking at their faces. She may become an asset for us in the future."

Hades closed his eyes and stroked his beard, and all of a sudden he smirked. Ultear raised an eyebrow out of confusion.

"Ultear, my dear. Actually I was searching for names and thanks to you, I got it. You as the leader, this Meredy, Kain, Rustyrose, Zancrow, Azuma and Caprico. All of you are, from now on, a team." Hades explained, a gleam of excitement lurking in his eye. "Seven Kin of Purgatory. It has a good ring on it. And for Meredy, I'll be training her with a magic I think suits her well."

"I am very honored, Your Highness." Ultear bowed.

"Now remember. Seven Kin of Purgatory is created for a sole purpose; To retrieve_ him."_

* * *

**A/N**

YAY FINALLY NATSU AND LUCY APPEARS!

guys i'm sorry for not updating sooner, approx. five hundred words before this chapter finished, i got a little writer's block.

but it's gone YAY

so here, read your fill;)


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